Improving local broadcasts in MLS

It should be covered like they do in the UK. The problem is that the announcers don’t have soccer knowledge. They’re probably bored and wish they were covering basketball or something. They don’t understand the nuances, so they just babble. It’s annoying. I turn the sound way down.

This one kills me.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve yelled at my TV, “Zoom out. Zoom out!”.

The local Columbus Crew broadcast on ONN is always really hard to watch. Mostly because the image looks like it was shot with a camera phone from 2002. #3 is definately one that fires me up and it happens way too often with MLS broadcasts.

I generally don’t mind the broadcasters on Telefutura (I speak Spanish), but the production team used to do this annoying thing (not sure they do it anymore) where they would cover the ENTIRE screen with match statistics around the 75th minute. You’d figure a Latino network would understand that’s a no-no, but it went on for the first two seasons they started broadcasting “Nuestro Futbol”.

….those are correct and simple fixes.

But as someone who’s actually dealt with it before, I can tell you you have no idea the lengths that teams will go to to disguise their lineup. Yes, some production teams are less than diligent about the formation (which is, let’s be honest, not the Rosetta Stone you’re making it out to be, as it becomes readily apparently pretty early on who’s playing where and who’s moving about), but you’d be amazed how teams will fudge their lineups. They’ll tell you a guy’s playing in a certain place and he’s not there at all. Some coaches are paranoid as hell about anyone finding out who’s playing where. It’s silly.

But it can’t be 100% blamed on the local production folks.

The majority of local MLS broadcasters really DO care. Many of them are up against it in terms of the resources devoted to them by their clubs. There are some clubs that don’t really care, there are some broadcasters just doing it for money or a lark or as a steppingstone. But there’s a core group of people who try to do those things you’ve laid out above every time out. Unfortunately, there are some who don’t, as well.

I’ve been watching more EPL matches now that they are on ESPN2, and I truly love the camera work they do there 10 times mores than MLS. When a good play happens, the replay cuts right to it. If it was offsides, you get a replay with special attention to where the player was at the time the ball was kicked. I wish they could get the MLS games up to par with that.

Also, I used to watch Ghost Hunters, until one day I realized it was a tremendous waste of my time (even with DVR). It’d probably be interesting if it had, you know, ghosts…

Great stuff, Steve. My favorite example of #5 was from the US-Ecuador friendly in Tampa a few years back on ESPN. Dave O’Brien was in full chat mode and when he asked Arena whether he was a Springsteen fan while the game was going on, Arena’s curt response was “No, not really”.

On #1, are you sure that you’re just not mistaking this for a typical line-up from Nowak where he has 3-4 guys playing out of their natural positions?

Great stuff.

Don’t forget #6: Zoom out! I don’t want to watch the movie Zidane.

After watching a Sounders game on Direct Kick a while back, I’m starting to think that there should only be one announcer. There’s too much distraction when two guys are fumbling all over each other, each trying to get their own quota of mostly irrelevant tangents in.

I must say I get tired of John Harkes saying “He’s gotta do better”

Go to this website for a world cup bracket calculator I developed:

There was a broadcast where Roger Torres was listed twice in the vertical lineup listing. They omitted Fred. Awful.

For the record, FC Dallas has a pretty good crew announcing games.

Is there something in the contracts with all of the broadcasters that states that nobody can say anything negative about the refs? There are so many bad calls, or inconsistencies and nothing is said on air. Maybe that is why they don’t show replays of offside calls.

John Harkes is so terrible that there is a facebook anti-fanclub.

As someone involved with MLS TV Production, I’d like to say that I understand the passion that prompted Steve’s comments, but they would have a lot more credibility without the sarcasm.

Now to take each point

1. Yes, it is easy to get the lineups right when they are given to us correctly. Lineups are usually confirmed about a half hour before game time. They come to the production truck hand delivered by a member of the home public relations staff. All we do is plug the information into the graphics device (DUET). If the coaches decide to obfuscate the information, then there isn’t anything we can do other than correct it as the game unfolds.

2. I agree that the field graphic with names in the proper positions is far more effective as opposed to just listing the player’s names. As far as I know, most teams use the field graphic.

3. I found this complaint rather vague. What exactly is a “long, static shot of someone?” What qualifies as “long?” Are the announcers talking about that player at the time? During this shot, is the goaltender just placing the ball for a goal kick, which I find visually boring?

3a. Missing a goal would be a terrible mistake to be sure. Keep in mind that unlike our European counterparts who grew up with soccer/football/futball, many of the producers an directors working MLS games are still adapting to the “timings” of the sport. The tendency to provide a replay as quickly as possible comes from years of doing American football, baseball, basketball, hockey, etc. As has been pointed out by league officials, soccer is a different kettle of fish. Taking a risk of running a replay as a corner kick was awarded can result in missing some critical action in the attacking zone. I suspect you will see a lot less of that as a result of the nearly missed goal last week.

4. You’re absolutely right about pronouncing names correctly. Again, the league provides pronunciation charts for every player. And after 35 years in the sports television industry, I know most announcers do their due diligence to get the names right. But sometimes clubs use pronunciations that don’t jibe with what the player prefers. I know a number of Major League Baseball players who would only tell you the way THEY wanted their name pronounced if you asked them personally.

5. I completely agree with the point about less talk. There is a fine line between effective commentary and wall-to-wall jabber. But sometimes it takes a while for a broadcast team to gel. Or for a new soccer announcer to get the proper sense of how much talk feels right. Please know that the people in the MLS announce booths want to do a good job and not only please you hard core fans, but attract new fans as well. And remember that American audiences don’t know the game nearly as well as those in the rest of the world where soccer is the number one sport. So, often our announcers ask themselves how much do they need to “instruct.” A question for you. Just how much discussion of strategy do you like on MLS telecasts? The game has evolved quite a bit from the days of the “W-M.” Are you interested in that evolution? Would you like more “personal” information on the players?

Finally, you should know that the league monitors this and other soccer blogs. And for good reason. We do our jobs for you, the soccer fan. We want to provide you with the best telecasts we can and so your feedback is important. In fact, I welcome any comments and suggestions made about any telecasts I’m involved in.

I believe the fact that soccer is “global game” has no relevancy on who should or shouldn’t be in the booth. How will we ever develop world class American soccer announcers unless we give people the chance to learn.

I’m sure most of Latin America, surely a hotbed of soccer thinks Andres Cantor is a soccer broadcasting god. But his infamous goal call just isn’t my cup of tea. Still, I understand his popularity in the Spanish speaking soccer community and think he is a most successful “entertainer.”

And anyone who has even a mild interest in the EPL has to appreciate the work of Martin Tyler and John Champion.

I understand your preference to watch games live as opposed to on television. TV, despite ever improving technology, still is a series of compromises for the true fan. As directors, we get to choose what you see and when. Latin American fans like the game shot very wide so as to show as many players on the field as possible. But European and US telecasts tend to show about 1/3 of the pitch at a time so the individual players are more recognizable.

I’m sorry you’re “bothered” by much of what you see on US soccer telecasts. As I said in a previous post, MLS executives monitor this blog. So your constructive criticism does get seen by decision makers. Personally, I’m very interested in your opinions of what works and doesn’t work for you in TV’s coverage of the game. That’s why I read this blog as well.

Glenn Davis does a great job. My only real complaints are actually getting the game at all off of 11.2, and their instance that is in HD (it’s not), and in the road game against the Fire that there was nobody else in the booth.

To TVSportsDir: can I send you a resume and audition tape? I’m a knowledgeable fan who also has over ten years experience in radio sports play-by-play. Unfortunately, my boss thinks soccer on the radio is boring and has less than no interest, so getting practice isn’t so easy.

The sports business/entertainment business question is a tough one. Pro sports teams’ management will tell you they’re in the entertainment business, hence the pyro, exotic entrances and obnoxious PA announcers. Have you ever gone to a NBA game and seen the PA announcer’s name on the marquee? Or said to a friend, “We gotta see the Soandsos game tonight. The PA guy is AWESOME!!”?

Import foreigners? Depends who it is. Just because you’re English doesn’t automatically make you good (coughFSCcough). BTW, it’s Jon Champion, at least according to the graphics on ESPN.

Sadly, I count myself in this group, there are soccer fans in the US who don’t follow MLS as closely as the English League, or Mexican, German, Spanish, etc. So there does need to be a bit of instruction about team history, coaches’ backgrounds, and maybe for infotainment, mentioning the NASL days (Seattle first got turned on to soccer in the mid-70s, Bob, when the first Sounder franchise joined the NASL.)

What about the other kind of local broadcast: radio? Who does it well? What can be done better? What makes a good radio broadcast?

I’m afraid that comparing a PA announcer at a live event to a television play-by-play or color announcer isn’t an apt analogy. The PA announcer’s role is much more limited and most seem to be modern day carnival barkers. To me, they all sound pretty much the same.

And you are certainly correct about the spelling of Mr. Champion’s first name. My error. It comes from the fact that his name, is never “fonted” on the EPL games I watch. One of the numerous errors of omission I think the EPL telecasts we see are guilty of.

Regarding what would make a good soccer radio broadcast. Radio isn’t my area of expertise and to be honest, I’ve only heard a couple of soccer radio broadcasts where the mandates to the announcers were, let’s just say, different.

The late Chick Hearn of the Los Angeles Lakers was highly revered for painting a terrific “words eye view” of the game being played. I think that would hold true for a soccer radiocast as well.

I think we have a ways to go before soccer has any substantial following on radio in the US. Baseball is radio’s #1 sport. In fact, many fans of the game will tell you they prefer it on radio.

Right now, soccer is a bit of a tough sell on television in most MLS markets. American sports fans are inundated with choices. Nearly every MLB, NBA, NHL, and NFL games are televised, not to mention thousands of division one college sports. Though soccer is gaining in popularity (TV ratings are up a bit so far this season), we still have a long way to go to see it compete for eyeballs with the long established American sports. The executives at MLS are smart, patient people. They know they just need steady, sustained growth. Not the attempt at an overnight sensation like the NASL attempted to be in the 70’s. As the sport grows, the demand for high quality radio broadcasts may also play a more important role.

I have to give my vote to the “sport” side of the argument. I really enjoy watching the Red Sox on NESN because they treat the broadcast as an “enhancement” of the sport. They don’t set out to make it “entertainment.” It becomes entertaining in its own right because they do that so well. Then, when forced to watch the Sox on FOX, I want to vomit. It’s all about schtick, and long winded stories about Tim McCarver’s career, and pizzaz, and you get the picture. It’s all about “entertainment.” And it completely sucks. I would say games on ESPN are somewhere in between the NESN broadcasts and FOX. But they are at least watcheable. The color guys do a very good job of analyzing the game and giving us some good insight into strategy. The play by play guy calls the action and sets up the color guys. Very simple. NESN does it superbly. ESPN does it well. FOX is a joke.

So I agree with the guy that said that you are, in fact, in the sports business (as opposed to the entertainment business). I understand what you are trying to say. But I guess my point is that you would make things entertaining (and watcheable), but just doing the game justice.